The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1887-08-18
THE PARK AFTER DARK.
INTERESTING NIGHT SCENES At
CENTRAL PARK MENAGERlE.

Eunting for Tramp Dogs and Stray Cats.
A Capital Place for SIeditation-Dead
Mans Landing The Late Staying
Lovers.
Keeper Tom DOnOhue every night salIfes
forth in Genital park with his shotgun on
hunt fof tramp dogs and stray cats.
The dogs come in to kill the rabbits
guineas and peafowl. The sheep are all
penned during the night Cats 90 Ito 1.-THE
park to get squirrels and birds. There
used to be good fishing in the lake, but il
hasn't been allowed for years
Night at the menagerics is perhaps more
interesting than elsewhere in the park
Somehow iron bars and cages do not look
nearly so strong at night as they do in
bread daylight, and a sense Of possible
danger adds considerable interest TO 4
midnight visit. As a rule the bI.utes sIeen
pretty sOundly, but there are executions
The sea lions, OF which there are six i'm
the ponds keep up their discordaut bark
ing until after - o'clock, and begin il
again at daylight. Every now and then
one If the eagles viii give a shrill, piercing
SHREK. which makes the chance paSser
start with sudden terror, and highly in
ccnses the residents of near by houses on
Fifth avenue. The coyotes, or prairie
wolves have a happy fashion Of bowling
ia their blood curdling way at every noise
and now and then the jackals and lions
join in the chorus. When the lion takes
n notion to give good old fashioned roar
every animal great and small in the me
nagerie lifts up IT'S voice. and sleep in the
usighborho0d for the next ten minutes is
impossible 10 every one but Mr. Crowley.
The chimpanzee He slumbers sweetIv all
night long, no matter how much Of 4
I H..
He he'd until a short time ago a little cot
10 sleel. on, but he broke the bottom ont
of it. and now he curls up on the floor of
his hig cage on the barracks. "
THE AEIMARS GET OUT.
Some Of the animals get out once IN
while. and then all hands turn out for q
hunt The tapir climbed over his fence
one night no very long ago and led the
keepers n lively chase before he was re-
captured He swaUn across the lake, and
it was fully two hours before he was put
in safe place again. The buffaloes have
got away more than once, and they are
apt to show fight before they will submit
to being driven back to their pens. The
lions and tigers lie on their backs with
their feet up in the air when they sleep.
and the bears, who in the day time are
mortal enemies, huddle together as closely
as possible as soon as night comes on. The
owls, although they are popularity sup
posed to stay awake ali night, don't do
anything of the kind ct the menagerie.
They wake up occasionally, but even then
they do not boot They only snap their
beGks lazily once or twice and turn over
for another nap.
There isn't usually much left in Central
park at night II Is never wildly exciting
except perhaps TO men Of superstitious
tendencies ard weak nerves. 1t is very
peaceful and quiet, and & capital place for
reflection. Through the black branches
of surrounding trees one can see the
Thousands Of lights glittering in the tall
fat lCusCS fer and near. Some are so
hiGA above the ground that they would be
easily mtstcllen for stars. Down by the
LAKE Il is very dark and still and solemn
at night. Tie black water laps laZily on
the shores and whispers queer secrets to
the listening bushes Over on the west
shore, where the little summer house is
dimly seen in the starlight, is Dead Mans
landing. Many u time has it had lying
on it's rough boards all that remained of
some poor, weary disheartened wretch,
who, taking chances on the hereafter, had
slipped over so quietly into the kindly
waters to add one more item to the record
of the found drowned"
THE LATE STAYING LOVERS.
The latest stayers in the park are the
lovers. They sit close together on the
benches and whisper the old story over
and over again until a gray coated brass
buttoned disturber happens along and
says in his cruel, official tones: Times
up; all persons must go outside. It's
after O'Clock" Think of it, Only
O'Clock, and they could sit there until
a. m. and never weary for one instant.
''Well, sir" said sparrow policeman,
"them lovers is a study. I've done some
courtin in my day as well rs any one,
but, Lord, | never had it as bad as them
as comes in here. Why, do you know,
I've seen 'em that far gone that they'd
come here when the snow lay three or
four inches deep in the ground, clear off
just space enough for two on a bench, and
sit there a talkin' an spoonin' for hours,
with the snow piled up on each side Of
them Fact, sir, an they begged to be
allowed to sit awhile longer when [ told
EN- it was time to be movin' out There's
more of 'em in the summer, of course, but
the winter ones is the most lOVin'.'
There used to be mysterious, nOncOm-
INITIAL woman who, every summer morn
ing as the clock was striking 4, would APP
pear on the ramble, and, walking swiftly
over to where the peuCocks had been strut
ting the day before search the ground for
feathers. When she found one, which
was not Often-fOr the children kept
keen lookout for them-she would stick 1t
in her hair and appear highly delighted at
the effect, which she noted in little bit
of broken looking glass. They say she
WAS never known to make but one re
mark, but that was often repeated She
would say I'm mighty fine bird when
ever she was spoken to- There her com
municativeness would cease.-New York
Sun